From Embers to flames
by Hewasneverhere
Summary: Special thanks to 8andahalfby11 for allowing me to use his universe to make this work The situation between the reorganized empire and Rondel have flared up once again. Both on the brink of war. Jap's non-interventionism and restrictions make it hard for the US to spread its influence. A secretive company seeks to increase its power. What does the future of the region hold?
1. Chapter 1

Special Thanks goes to 8andahalfby11 for allowing me to use his characters and universe to make this work.

This is a very work in progress story and will be subject to change. Thank you :D.

Reviews are much appreciated

President Mahana stared at the phone, hands clasped together he had just finished talking to the Japanese prime minister about the situation in the special region. In front of him were members of the Executive Committee of the National Security Council or EXCOMM for short, many thought the committee was only for the Cuban missile crisis but it is still very much around, the council has convened for at least 31 times in the last 7 years by both administrations thanks to the special region . For years the US has been trying to extend its influence into the special region. Today seems to have presented the perfect opportunity. The only question is how to do it?

Robert Kilter the President's National Security Advisor had an idea that just might work.

"Mr president. I have an idea that just might work," he said.

"Make it a good one then." Mahana sighed.

"We could send in a PMC in under the guise of peacekeeping operations to the special region."

"Yeah. And the Japanese would just let them pass with no problems. Robert, as much as I value your input, this is by far the stupidest idea you could think of." Mahana cutting him off.

"I think you are underestimating our dear friend over there." Kilter smiled gesturing to the man sitting at the end of the table. Compared to the others in the room he had no official title. This quiet lanky Asian man was, however, the CEO of Atlas International Group, by far the biggest Private military company the world had ever seen.

One might wonder how a CEO got a seat on the council, the answer is simple. He is not a member, not officially anyway. The CEO, Philip Young is one of the world's most powerful men, wielding tremendous influence and wealth. The US view him and his company an asset or numerous wetwork missions. Not to mention he was one of the reasons Mahana got the presidency in the first place. It was an open secret in the hill that most people in both aisles of the political spectrum owed Atlas one reason or other, Mahana was no different. Having Young on his side would make a powerful ally.

Philip Young calmly sipped his tea, "I would very much love to expand my area of operations into the special region, Mr president. You should know the costs of an expedition of this size will cost a tremendous amount of money."

"You got a blank check. Whatever you need. Call it a repayment for your work with on China problem." Mahana quickly replied. "But I must ask, how are you going to get the Japanese to agree to this, many members of the Japanese diet would surely refuse such a request."

"Mr president. Atlas here has in-depth connections to the Japanese government. I am sure he has enough political leverage to convince them to let him through." the director of the CIA pointed out.

"You are quite right, Mr Cole. Your agency has sure done their research." Young laughed. "Not to worry, Mr President, We have our ways of convincing people." his gaze seemed to lock onto Manahan as if to say he could do the same to him.

"In the meantime, I think you should prepare your check." With that he got up and left the room, effectively ending the meeting.

One month later.

News of Atlas international group to be the first private entity allowed to enter the gate made the headlines around the world. No one expected the deal would go through 2 weeks ago when it was announced that the USA had contracted Atlas International Group to send a force through the gate as peacekeepers as the crisis between Rondel and the Empire worsen.

The once secretive company who prefers to work in the shadows now stood in the limelight. The public responded with mixed feelings. Some were against the agreement as it meant an escalation as more troops are being deployed into the special region.

But many also see this as a sign that the Japanese government is easing restrictions to the special region.

There were mixed emotions about sending in a large task force of what are essentially mercenaries to a gradually tense area, but most people could agree on the fact that them being a corporation, not a country reinforces their neutral stance in the fight.

The assembly of material and the equipment for the expedition that was being stockpiled during the 2 weeks of negotiation now flowed through the gate.

A section of land had been scouted out by Atlas surveyors only 4 days before for the construction of their base of operations. It was close to a small coastal town not too far from either the US or Japanese base. Prefab materials now littered the entire area as engineers got to work laying the foundations of what is to be the largest base in Falmart.

Officially the expedition force is headed up by the US Department of defence, but in reality, the whole operation is controlled by Paul Sawyer, an ex-US army colonel and now commander of all Atlas's military personnel in the special region.

Sawyer was a man of action, he hated sitting in an office all day being a pencil pusher. He wanted action. To lead from the front with his men to battle till the end. It was the reason why he left the army in the first place, too much politics, too much paperwork and not enough action. Not to mention the fat green stacks of bills he receives every month. When the head of the logistics department came over personally to inform him of his reassignment how could he turn it down?

It came with very nice perks as well. Away from the bullshit of the outside world and right at the front line, just where he was meant to be. The sweet office was a nice touch too, a view of the beautiful Falmart hills and the coast nearby. He was still a pencil pusher sure. But now at least he was where the action is, hell he might even be able to go on a mission with his men.

Looking out of the balcony he saw a convoy of 5 Japanese HMW and 3 Komatsu LAVs fitted with .50 cal machine guns on the roof. It would only mean one thing. The door behind him opened.

"Sir General Hazama wants to see you. Sir!" a corporal entered, saluting the Colonel.

"Yeah, I know. At ease. Tell him to come right up." Sawyer sighed turning around and sat at his large chair as he waited for the Japanese General.

The clomping of a mess of heavy boots could be heard long before Hazama and his entourage even arrived at his office. When they did, Hazama did not bother to knock, walking right in. Boy did he look pissed. He was flanked by 6 other soldiers which he recognised as members of the Japanese Special forces group and one in officer uniform as 1st Lieutenant Yanagida Akira. He had fallen from favour not too long ago due to his actions 7 years ago but still serves as the General's chief advisor.

"What is the meaning of this?" the General growled. The lieutenant walked over passing several documents and paperwork for a flight of 8 F-35Bs and 16 A-10s they are the first of many air wings to be sent to the special region, all pre-approved by the Japanese Diet and department of defence so there should not be any problems.

Underneath were countless others with the same approval papers which Sawyer already knew since day one of the operations. Atlas was sending in everything they had into the special region. Everything a modern army needs, that includes attack helicopters to Main battle tanks or even ballistic missiles should they require. He could find nothing wrong with the paperwork. All of them looked perfectly fine.

"I think you already know what they are General. My equipment." Sawyer calmly replied.

"Is all of that equipment necessary? Our men found M1A2 Abrams and Merkava MkIVs in your trucks. Not to mention rocket Components and precision laser equipment." the Lieutenant questioned.

"Maybe. You must understand we are a private entity. Here to ensure the peace and stability of the region. We need our own equipment to stay independent." he shrugged as he stirred his cup of coffee.

"You have not answered my question on the rockets and laser components."

"Like I said we are a private entity. A private Corporation I might add."

"Tch. Too much freedom for one corporation to weld." Sawyer could hear the Lieutenant softly curse, attracting a glance from his superior. But without a doubt, he agrees with him completely.

"We are the first besides the USA and Japan to ever set foot in the region. We would, of course, be interested in finding out more about this place. My superiors want to set up a research base over here and to also launch our own satellites."

"I hope you know what you are doing Sawyer. This is still technically Japanese territory. Step out of line and We will not hesitate to take you and your band of mercenaries down." Hazama softly warned as he walked right up to his table.

Sawyer rose from his seat, the cup of coffee still in his hand mid-stir. Moving closer till he was practically centimetres apart"No you are not. You are very much mistaken General. This is private property now. All 40 kilometres of the open area surrounding this place is my kingdom. Mine and mine alone. You will do well to remember that." Sawyer smiled as if to prove a point 3 men equipped with SCAR-Ls walked in through the open door, wearing the newly developed EXO suit.

"Oh. And next time. Just send the paperwork regarding Atlas to the office in the Alnus settlement. Our attaché there will do the rest. No need to personally come to deliver it to me. And if you want to see me. Please contact my secretary first to clear a date for you before you come in. I am a busy man. And in the event, you must come in at a short notice. Have the courtesy to knock before entering." Sawyer smiled as he sat back down, flashing his most arrogant grin as he could possibly make to the Japanese.


	2. Chapter 2

Without another word they left, finally leaving Sawyer and the 3 men in peace.

"Everything good sir?" the corporal asked

"Everything is fine Corporal. Everything is just fine." he smiled. "This is the best damn cup of coffee I have drunk in a long time. The sweet tears of those goddamn Nips really do make a difference!" he grinned as he watched Hazama's convoy pull away fromhalf-finishedished base.

There was still a lot of work to be done, Sawyer could trust that the Japanese would not be bothering him anytime soon and his hardware should be coming in nicely. But there were still troubling reports of banditry in and around the region. The Japanese might have suppressed most bandit activity in the region but in the outskirts still contained several bandit strongholds. The elements of the rebel empire still stayed strong with multiple warlords now controlling the regions. Ever since the Japanese and americans deposed of Zozal there was not much political will to do anything about the rest of Zozal allies.

"So, Captain Parker. I take it the preliminary security analysis has just been completed?"

"Yes, sir. We have just completed our security analysis of the area."

"Anything we should look out for?"

"Yes. Our analyst thinks that the nearby city of Estila be a source of major concern."

"Hmm. One of the reasons why we built our base here is due to the town being nearby. What makes them think it could be a problem?"

"There have been reports. Our arrival here does not seem to be as welcoming as we have assumed. The citizens view us with suspicion. The governor does not seem to want us here. He has attempted to enter the site multiple times but we made sure that did not happen." Parker explained as he read off the report.

"The town and its surrounding regions also seems to be controlled by a criminal organisation, the Keepers. Their leader Chrisco La Sissle was a mage from Rondel. He seems to have quite a reputation around here. Practically rules the town and the villages with an iron fist. His men have attempted the breach the perimeter multiple times. There have been a total of 4 instances where they were successful in entering the base in the last 2 weeks. One was found trying to steal supplies and another one was trying to access the armory. They were dispatched on the spot but it is still quite a scare."

"Have we taken any steps to stop this from happening?" Sawyer sighed, the city might be more of a burden than an asset they once thought it was.

"Yes, we have. Additional manpower have been diverted to strengthen the perimeter. Our engineers have just finished setting up the fences and cameras. Motion sensors and the iTI detection software should take care of the rest. Our main problem comes from Keepers, they have been attacked our supply convoys multiple times. They were almost successful once in capturing one of our trucks."

"Define almost."

"They took out the driver and damaged the truck's fuel tank before it caught fire."

"Annd?"

"We were transporting one of our Leopard 2 that time as well. I think you can imagine how all it worked out."

"Damages?"

"We took down most of the raiders. But some got away. We towed the truck back for repairs, they rest got away with a few boxes of rations at most."

"How the hell did those SOBs even managed to kill our of our guys in the first place?" Sawyer demanded, these reports could be the start of more trouble to come. It was his responsibility to shut them down before it spirals out of control.

"Our men have recovered several what seems to be muskets sir. Intel teams say that they came from rondel. It seems that they are supplying arms to the Keepers in order to disrupt the empire's trade."

"Christ. I hope you at least have some good news Captain." Sawyer sighed.

"As a matter of fact. I do. Our engineers have finished construction of the launch pad and assembling the rocket they are waiting for your orders."

"Good. This should speed things up" sawyer nodded We shall launch in a weeks time. In the meantime make sure our perimeter is secure and our convoys unaffected. In need you and your men to prepare for combat. The moment our satellite is launched"

The town was buzzing with activity these few days, ever since the men in black came to the town and begun building a base just like the ones in Alnus build by the JSDF. They were different however, in the past week they focused solely on building the base, no one could come close to the general vicinity, those that tried to sneak past only resulted in their swift capture and after a beating later were released back in the town. Their uniforms were nothing like the men in Tan or Green. They were clad in black armor and shirts. Their only distinction was the patch they wore, just like the rest they had their own one. A simple red triangle with a white Arch above it.

Timothy La Kin was one of the residents of the small town, his parents have lost their lives to imperial warlords when he was just 10 years old. It has been 2 years since then. Japanese influence in his part of the region had been minimal, he had to travel to a much larger town closer to Alnus 10 leagues away to attend the school there.

He had heard all sorts of stories about the men in black. Men that successfully evaded the men in black patrolling the area disappeared.

People started to think the site is cursed, the elders warned everyone that venturing into the forest nearby will be cursed with roaming the forest for eternity never to be seen again. Not that he cared much for these stories, the city got its own problems anyway. The keepers roam the streets without fear of the local authorities, who instead sometimes join in on the action.

He is an imperial human citizen, but due to his tanned skin, some mistook him for a dark elf child at times especially at night. Living was beginning to become harder as at nights, you never know when you might be jumped by drunken soldiers or Keepers looking for someone to beat up. He had saved up enough money to stay in an inn for a week, it was not possible to save up more since the Keepers would just steal it.

The Inn was one of the cheaper ones, attracting all sorts of clientele. The inn owner gave him a job as a server, it was not much but enough to pay the rent and leave a small bit aside. He hated the job, the lecherous glares from the drunken customers were hard to tolerate, but he needed the money. One day he thought to himself. One day he will save up enough money to go to Italica or maybe he live in the Alnus settlement, if the stories were true, he could maybe finally settle down without watching his back every night.

He was serving one of the tables during the night when he overheard a conversation between a group of men dressed in dark robes, masks covered their faces., signifying their role as a member of the Keepers organisation. One of them held a box that looked like it was made of paper. On the box words "Property of Atlas International (Rations)" his school taught english and japanese and he was able to make out the words 'property of' there was a logo stamped on top of it. The red triangle and white arch confirmed it belonged to the men in black.

"Those men in black are nothing we expected them to be. We ambushed one of their metal carriages using those staves boss got from Rondel. Worked like a charm, we got the driver and stole its goods. They aren't that powerful as they claim to be."

"Do you think they will come after you?" one asked.

"Bah. it's been a week and all they do is stay in their metal houses up there. There is quite a lot of noise coming from the sky these few days. Maybe they have dragon problems."

"Suits us just fine. But What if they have those flying swords like the men in green or tan have?"

"Nah. my men in Alnus tell me the men in black are nothing more than mercenaries from the other world. Here to ensure peace between the empire and Rondel. They don't have weapons the Men in green have. I heard in their world they these mercenaries are not allowed to command those iron beasts too. We will be fine."

"I think the time has come to show those men in black what the Keepers are capable of. The boss has set plans in motion to capture their base and even take their riches. Who know what they have in their stores. Their weapons too will fetch a high price. We will gather our people together and the whole region will march up to their base and demand ransom from the men in green." the man laughed, his mug clinking un unison with the rest of the group.

Timonothy shuddered at the thought, but such is the life in the region of the empire there was nothing a child like him could do other than carry one with his life, waiting for his shift to end so he could return to bed and sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

It was 11 pm in the newly christened Entente Air Force base. The base was still buzzing with activity. Without the Japanese stopping their convoys everytime they cross the gate, Atlas special region task force could finally put their plans into motion. Their heavy lift C- 5,C-17s and C-130 aircraft were the last to be reassembled. After close to a month's worth of work, the Atlas Special region air force has been fully assembled. The size of the base dwarfs the size of the Japanese base in Alnus and even their own Charron air force base in Kazakhstan which was the world's largest base in the world spanning 4 different runways each 1kilometres long. It was even possible to have multiple aircraft take off from different sections of the runway or have them land on opposite ends.

Sawyer was proud of what they managed to accomplish they were 12 days ahead of schedule, in a span of less than a month they have completed most of the base and got their combat assets up and running. Their engineers and mechanics worked day and night, They could expect a day off tomorrow as a reward for their hard work. Unfortunately, that would not be the case he would soon find out.

There was a knock on his office door.

"Come in."

Captain Parker walked in again, this time with a man wearing local clothes. "This is Sgt Mache from 4th Echelon. He says he got an important piece of information we would want to know."

"Well, Sgt. The floor is yours." Sawyer replied.

"Thank you, sir. I was on an intel gathering mission under Captain Holmer direct command. At 22.55 hours in an inn's bar. I Overheard a conversation by one of the Keeper's lieutenants, we identified him as Cristo La Sissle. Brother of the leader of the Keepers He was talking to his friends about the convoy raid a few weeks back. He thinks we are weak and plans rile up citizens of the city and the surrounding region to try and take over the base."

"Are you sure that is what he said?"

"Positive. He said ordered him and his comrades to do so, something about capturing our weapons. His men have been confirmed to be armed with muskets from an unknown source in Rondel. My contact in the city's lord has also confirmed the fact that the lord is going to join in on the attack."

"Do you know what time is he going to kick it off?" Sawyer started to become worried. He had seen shit like this in Iraq and Israel where they use civilians as human shields. Even if he was to fire into the hostile crowd, the backlash from such an act would no doubt destroy the company rep and force them to pull out of the region.

"Unfortunately he did not give a definite time. He simply said it would happen during the afternoon. In a weeks time"

"Thank you, Sargent, that would be all. Get some rest, Captain Parker and I will take it from here."

The man gave a quick salute and left the room.

"Christ. This is going to become Gaza all over again if we don't do something about it. Parker, I will be bringing the satellite launch schedule forwards to 0700 hours in two days time. Get your men prepped. Once we get the readings I want you and your men to prepare for combat "

"Are you enacting war plan orange?"

"No, we will be doing war Plan Red. I want to cripple the Keepers and the Imperials in one simultaneous push. The keepers think we are weak and only fear the Japanese SDF. Well. I think it is high time we show them who has all the cards.

Parker did not reply, he simply stood to attention and gave a salute before leaving the room. Sawyer looked out of his office window as the door closes smoking his pipe. The sight of his helicopters and aircraft pleased him tremendously.

"Those bastards won't know what hit them," he said out loud, a small smirk plastered across his face.

Today was Timothy's day off. No work or school something that would happen only once in a blue moon.

The conversation he heard yesterday was still fresh in his mind.

The keepers were already hard at work. In the main square, the man he recognised from yesterday was on a podium surrounded by armed men, even some from the city guard, they were armed with wooden staffs instead of their normal spears and bows. An ever-increasing crowd of people gathered around listening to the man talk. He did not pay much attention to what he was talking about, but whatever he was saying struck a chord with the crowd. There were more and more angry looking people chanting in unison with the man.

He prefers not to listen to the Keepers' words. They were respected in the surrounding regions since they practically took over the government. No one relied on the city's forces to help them with anything, instead if you wanted something done, you go to the Keepers.

He turned a corner heading for the city library when he bumped into a large sized man.

"Sorry!" he squeaked in apology. The man looked down and smiled,

"It's fine young lad! Hope you weren't injured by my large gut!" he laughed, ruffling Timothy's hair.

As the man waddled away, a soldier walked up to him, he was dressed in Imperial armour and a dark blue cloak, signifying him as the governor's personal guard, the Dawnguards. They acted much like the Zorzal's Oprichnina arresting anyone they saw fit.

"Ah. I was looking for you, little one." the man grinned. "The governor wishes to see you."

"What for?" Timothy nervously retorted as he desperately looked around for a way out. He had heard stories of people being dragged away by the Dawnguards never to be seen again.

The soldier simply shrugged, "At first I don't know why, but now after seeing you, I think I might have a pretty good idea." he grinned.

Before he could reply, a mess of hands appeared, grabbing him from behind.

"Woah! Let me go!" Timothy shouted as he struggled and kicked, trying to wiggle his way out of their grip.

"Hey! Whats going on over there! Unhand that boy!" a voice boomed behind him. It was the same man he bumped into just now,

"I am working under the orders of Lord Kelser. Do not interfere least you want to incur the dawnguard wrath." the soldier commanded.

The man ignored the soldier's warnings and begun prying the hands of the two men still grabbing on to him.

A loud bang resonated across the city, the soldier's wooden staff that was behind his back now stood smoking held by the soldier. The man's lifeless body lay crumpled on the floor. Any bystanders only stood and watched.

"No one is going to save you anymore." the soldier whispered, his gloved hand caressing Timothy's tear stricken face, before he hit him with the butt of his musket, knocking Timothy out.

When he came to, he was on a large bed surrounded by thick walls. There was a small window connecting one cell to another, crystals illuminate the rooms. He looked around hoping to find a way to escape.

"Hey, new blood! You best give up whatever hope you have of escaping. There is no way out." a boy said as he poked his head out of the other cell.

"Where am I?" Timothy asked.

"Where else? The Lord's personal dungeon, this is where he keeps all his slaves." the boy sighed.

"So how did you get here?"

"The same way most of us here did, the lord ordered people to kidnap us off the streets. Many of us get sold off afterwards." the boy answered sadly.

"Shut up prisoners!" a man dressed in dawnguard uniform ordered banging the metal bars with his baton.

He walked up to Timothy's cell and opened it. "The Lord wants to see you," he growled as he dragged the boy out.

There was no point in resisting as he made his way to the lord's room flanked by two other guards. The lord sat behind his large table writing some sort of document.

The two guards pushed him forward into the room and closed the door leaving him alone with the lord of the city Estilai. He was once an ally of the old Zorzal regime, supplying both money and soldiers to his cause.

His eyes sparkled a playful twinkle as he saw the nervous looking Timothy being pushed into the room.

"Mmm… Lucho sure has an eye on my taste." Nhora said as he approached slowly. With each step he took forward, Timothy took one step back. Till his back pressed against the wall.

"Now, now. There is no need to be scared. You're going to be here for a long time. I own you after all." Nhora grinned, cupping his hands over the trembling boy's smooth cheeks.

-The following scenes will not be written due to obvious reasons, you can imagine what happens next yourself unless you guys want me to actually write it. If not I am only hinting it

Who am I kidding I already wrote it but I don't think u guys want to see it right? Right?-

When Timothy woke up, it was already the sun rising from the east, he had slept through an entire day. The guard was banging on the door again.

"Get up you little brat," he grunted, setting down a tray of food on the wooden table. Before slamming the door shut again. A cup of wine, a piece of stale bread and pottage serves as his breakfast. It was quite extravagant in his opinion since he would usually only have stale bread for breakfast. But still did not serve to lessen the pain from the other night. His jaw still ached from the beatings, leaving the bread aside, for now, he tucked into his bowl of plain pottage with what seems to be cheese on top of it.

"Hey, new guy. How was your first night?" the boy from yesterday peeked out of the window again.

"Painful. Does he always do stuff like this?"

Yup. especially to the newcomers. Don't worry you will get used to it, you might even enjoy it. He is much better than some others I have heard."

"I haven't got your name by the way," Timothy said.

"Oh yes. Names Nate Kicade. What about yours?"

"Timothy La Kin. Just call me Timothy or Tim." he sighed, "Wait are you the Nate Kincade son of the Kincade merchant house?"

"Yeah… about that. I will not be surprised if dad is still searching for me. Too bad, I am stuck here, I miss him you know? After my ma died it was just the two of us, till those dawnguards grabbed me off the street." Nate leaned back into his bunk.

"Know how you feel…" Tim replied until a bright orange light flashed across the horizon, rising high and faster into the bluish sky cut him off.

"Whoa! Is that the god wrecker?" Nate breathed.

"God wrecker? What's that?"

"Have you been living under a rock for the past 7 years? The god wrecker is a weapon brought over by the men in green and tan. They used it to bring hardy and the rest of the gods to their knees as well as an invasion force. This looks like it came from the men in black!" Nate explained excitedly.

Tim looked at the rocket mesmerised by the trail of smoke it left behind followed by another one, and other. It reminded him of shooting stars when he and his parents would go out into the grasslands stargazing years ago.

In the Atlas base, however, the scene was much different, Sawyer stood in the newly constructed Operations room. Overseeing the entire operation Everything was calm and going as planned.

"Systems look good. JULIAN is running secondary checks." one of the operators announced.

"Launch complete. It would take another two hours for footage to start coming in. All 8 satellites show no problems." their base Ai announced as the large screen in the middle of the room displayed the necessary information.

"Hmm… so it was a good idea to launch the rockets from our underground silos." Sawyer chuckled lighting up his cigar.

"Not to mention using Minuteman IIs and SS-18 ICBMs to launch them. Using this as an excuse to bring strategic weapons into the special region. Genius." Parker grinned as he approached Sawyer.

"Your men prepped?" Sawyer asked.

"As ready as they can ever be. JULIAN is marking targets and places of interests via the predator feed. "

"Good, get yourselves to the warbird. We are going in as soon as the satellites get into position." Sawyer nodded.

Parker gave a salute and walked away to the armoury.

"Hey, Mick. Get the rest of the guys to the armoury and suit up, we are to be wheels up by 0800," he spoke into his throat mic.

"Roger Cap me and Kirkman are on the way."

The base was busier than usual, personal rushing from place to place making the last preparations for Operation Rolling Dust, the operation to secure the surrounding area for Atlas.

In the city, there was widespread panic in the city. The launch came from the men in black's base. The keepers were now second-guessing their decision to try and capture their base. What if the men and green or tan are also there? Christo wondered. He and his associates were discussing how to further their plans when 8 bight light flews into the air from the direction of the men in black's base.

Both the keepers and city's garrison have been fully equipped with muskets from rondel and were preparing to march for their base when this happened. Now both groups gathered on the city walls scanning the horizon for a sign of the men in black.

After some time had passed, the men relaxed, it still left the men wondering what those 8 bright lights were. They have heard rumours of something similar in Alnus 7 years ago but no one from here was there to witness such an event.

Several men continued to scan the ridgeline for any movement. But they shouldn't have bothered as silent vultures high up in the air circled their prey. Under their wings were 8 hellfire missiles. The predator's camera sending high-resolution footage in real time back to base, waiting for the order to strike. JULIAN the base AI marked potential targets outlining them in a red box on the screen.

Colonel Sawyer took another swing at his coffee, took and deep breath and announced, "This is Overlord. Operation Rolling dust is a go. I repeat Rolling dust is a go. Special Region soldiers are now considered hostile. Engage all enemy targets. Godspeed. Overlord out."

As soon as he finished that sentence, the 7 F-5E Tiger II aircraft circling the city tipped its wings and dived down towards the city Each with 6 500 pound JDAMS under the wing. MQ-9 Reapers released their deadly payload from their pylons as 8 hellfire missiles from each drone dived down to the city below, each with their own targets locked into their systems.

On the ground it was utter confusion, explosions rang out across the city, battlements and emplacements were the first to go, ballistas lining the walls have been blown apart by Hellfire missiles within seconds. Fire and smoke could be seen rising throughout the city. Cristo huddled behind several wooden boxes praying to whatever gods out there to put an end to the bombing. For a brief second it seemed like his prayers have been answered, the explosions stopped.

Picking himself up and dusting off the dirt on his white toga, before he could even shout any more orders at his men, the 7 black F-5 Tigers swooped down low, one of them just inches away from Cristo, the screech of the engines was deafening, and the blowback swept everything away, perforating eardrums, the boxes Cristo hid behind scattered, smashing all over the place. Cristo and his men did not fare any better, several were blown off their footing landing at the bottom of the stairs and their eardrums still ringing from the screeching.

One of the keepers ran over, covered in dust and bleeding all over, "They are coming!" he gasped before collapsing on the ground coughing blood. Men rushed over to his side, Cristo looked at the poor man, his metal armour had been shredded, pieces could be seen sticking out of his legs and arms.

"Who did this?" Cristo demanded.

"The men in black. They got wind of our plans. The stores were destroyed. They destroyed everything." the man coughed before succumbing to his wounds.

"Lord Cristo you should see this!" one of the city guards called out from a nearby tower. Dashing up the crumbling stone stairs, the sight that greeted him could only be described as gut-wrenching. A huge cloud of dust could be seen approaching rapidly, black dots in the sky are also quickly becoming clearer. Iron swords circled the skies One could be seen with flames coming out from the back, a black object detached from it as it fell to the ground.

Cristo could only stare at the sky too dazed to do anything else, he and many of them were doomed and he knew it. The only question left was would he survive this? He thought just as a 500 pound JDAM sent the tower crashing down.

"Breaker one actual. You're in the clear. Link up and clear the area." the voice of the battle captain came over the comm link.

"Alright, boys you heard the man! Time to give these Keepers something to Keep!" Parker shouted as the warbird flew in low. The automatic doors open as the helicopter hovered over the landing zone. Parker and his men simply jumped out not bothering to rappel down. To onlookers, it would seem like suicide but time was of the essence and the XOS-9 EXO suit just recently developed by Atlas Systems, the RnD section of Atlas international was designed with this purpose in mind.

The hydraulics hissed as they took the brunt of the fall. The HUD took a moment to recalibrate before it started marking targets with red triangles. The city guards have already mobilized and many converged upon Parker and his group.

"This is your only warning surrender peacefully or you will be fired upon!" Parker shouted in English, his throat mic automatically translating it into imperial.

Some of them hesitated for a second, the sight of seeing men jumping from such a height and still in perfect shape signified superhuman strength. Several of them threw down their muskets raising their hands high in the air much to the disgust of their comrades and commanding officer who demanded that they pick them back up or be branded as traitors.

Despite that many did not heed his warnings.

"So be it. Frank. Get your shields up." Parker shrugged. He nodded and holstered his SCAR and pulled out his Glock sidearm, his left arm had extended out forming a rectangular shield.

"Check your fire and try not to hit any civilians."

The guards had their muskets raised waiting for their commander to give the order to fire. Which parker ensured would never come. A bullet from his SCAR made sure of that. The next few minutes consisted of frantic and chaotic fire from the disorganised dawnguards as they were cut down by automatic fire. Their weapons might have been a significant improvement, but their armour still consisted of thin metal plates which the 7.62mm NATO rounds punched through like a hot knife through butter.

Grenades went off as Parker and his team lobbed grenades from their underslung grenade launchers at any group of dawnguards trying to regroup. Spent casings littered the floor as their team's machine gunner Jack armed with the German MG-3 sent bursts of lead into the ever-increasing pile of guardsmen. Dawnguards hiding behind crates and barrels quickly realised the destructive power of automatic weapons as they ripped them and their cover apart in a matter of seconds.

Counterfire was futile, most missed and those that hit bounced off or unable to penetrate the armour. Parker and his squad looked like a group of reapers, calmly walking down the street with the occasional burst of fire cutting down any exposed Dawnguards.

The wall behind them burst open and a black Leopard 2A4 emerged from the dust firing its main gun at a building that was swimming with guards as if to further punctuate the air of invincibility they had to the citizens of the city who looked on with horror and curiosity from their homes and alleys at the men marching down the streets. The ground shook and rattled as the iron behemoths rolled down the roads and avenues that was meant for horses and wooden carriages.


End file.
